KUALA LUMPUR — Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has been meeting with several party leaders in talks to form a unity government, said sources.

The Pejuang chairman has been meeting with United Malays National Organisation’s (Umno) Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and even Perikatan Nasional minister Dr Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri over the past three days.

A source close to Dr Mahathir said he was looking to form a unity government with support from parties from all sides.

“There were discussions among them towards forming a unity government,” the source told The Malaysian Insight on Thursday (Oct 29).

The Dr Mahathir-linked Facebook page Kelab Che Det posted his meeting with the three leaders.

Mr Razaleigh, or better known as Ku Li, had an audience with Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah after Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) president Anwar Ibrahim claimed he had the numbers to form a government.

Dr Zulkifli, the minister in charge of religious affairs, however, is not a member of any party and was appointed as a senator.

Dr Mahathir is also set to approach other parties in the opposition including the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Warisan soon.

“He will be meeting them soon to discuss the possibility before Parliament begins,” a source said.

Parliament begins its budget meeting on Monday.

On Tuesday, Bersatu Supreme Council discussed the possibility of party president Muhyiddin Yassin meeting former chairman Dr Mahathir, eight months after the Sheraton Move which shattered their relationship, said party sources.

The Malaysian Insight understands Mr Muhyiddin told the Supreme Council meeting there has been “efforts” from Dr Mahathir’s side to meet him recently and opened the floor for discussion on the topic.

“The president (Muhyiddin) asked us our views on the matter. There have been approaches from Dr Mahathir,” the source told The Malaysian Insight on the condition of anonymity.

This move comes amid Mr Muhyiddin facing a loss of majority in the Dewan Rakyat and the crucial must-pass Budget 2021 looming next month.

Another Supreme Council member confirmed the matter and said Mr Muhyiddin had asked if the meeting would affect the party’s already shaky ties with Umno.

However, an aide to Dr Mahathir said the former prime minister did not initiate a meeting with his successor and there was no meeting scheduled.

“We definitely did not (approach for the meeting),” the aide said.

The Malaysian Insight understands that the meeting between the two was done through an individual not related to the political sphere, but has close ties with Dr Mahathir and Mr Muhyiddin.

It was previously reported that Mr Muhyiddin has been attempting to meet Dr Mahathir via official channels and intermediaries but was not entertained by the 95-year-old in the past eight months.

Dr Mahathir and Mr Muhyiddin fell out when the former did not consent for Bersatu to break away from Pakatan Harapan, which caused the collapse of the government in February after just 22 months.

Mr Muhyiddin went on to form the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government with Umno, PAS, GPS and other Barisan Nasional component parties.

Since then, Dr Mahathir has parted ways with Bersatu alongside five others and formed Pejuang, another Malay party.

Dr Mahathir has continuously condemned the new government and filed a motion of no confidence against Mr Muhyiddin in May.

Just last week, Dr Mahathir filed another motion of no confidence against Mr Muhyiddin along with 15 other lawmakers from the opposition. He also criticised PN for wanting to declare an emergency last week.

Mr Muhyiddin also has come under fire from his coalition partners, Umno, who were mulling over moving their support to opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

A government source added Mr Muhyiddin was seriously considering mending ties with Dr Mahathir as it would bolster his numbers in Parliament after Umno’s recent threats.

“He (Muhyiddin) wants to expand his numbers,” said the source.

This comes amid Mr Muhyiddin facing several threats, mainly from PKR, to vote down Budget 2021 as a sign of no confidence against the prime minister who pushed for an emergency last week.

The Agong, despite rejecting the PN proposal, has pledged his support for Mr Muhyiddin and urged politicians once again not to play politics. 

PKR president Anwar Ibrahim who claims he has the majority to form a government is still waiting for the palace to have an audience with other political party leaders to confirm his numbers. THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT